New Current Account? First Direct or Smile?

Voyager2002

CopperPlate wrote:

Don't think that you can talk to Co-Op Bank staff about smile accounts - although there are no Co-Op branches in Scotland TMK so couldn't say for definite. Might be like Halifax and Bank of Scotland where their systems are (now) integrated. But I've always found the smile staff really efficient when you phone them compared to having had a branch based account with RBS for years and having to face sulky staff in a snaking queue at lunchtime.

If on-line access to Smile is down then staff in Co-op banks will do things for you, but generally they will refuse to do things that you could do on-line for yourself. However, if you have access to a Co-op branch you can pay in cheques there, and they will clear more quickly than through a post office.

Jake'sGran

I've been with Smile for a very long time and they do have great customer service. I like being able to have a savings account with them alongside the current account because transfers are immediate. I never have much in the savings account and their ISA does not pay the best rate but taking them all round I think they are good and they regularly win awards.. All my family are with them so if I should want to give my son in law some money for whatever it might be I can do it so easily. The same applies with my son who just has a non internet account with them.

1jim

smile is great (except for stopping cashback on the gold credit card), you can pay in and withdraw money at the post office, customer service has always been great
tried to move to first direct many years ago when they were offering £50 to change (before smile) and the application process seemed to take forever so i told them to stop the process and applied to smile online and this was done with no problems atall (first direct might be different now though)

Mercenary

CopperPlate wrote:

and am considering moving to fd (yes, really!!) as I'd like to take up their offset mortgage offer next year so I am not knocking fd at all

Go for it!
We moved to their offset mortgage this year (with the zero transfer fee offer) and it has more than halved our mortgage payments! Our only problem was with our previous provider as they were (deliberately?) slow in replying to FD's request for final details.
Best thing we've done for a long time . Wish we'd done it sooner.

System

How about Nationwide?

You could get a FlexAccount and a e-savings account.

I find them to be excellent, and have been with them for about 10 years when other bank accounts have come and gone.

BTW, there is certainly a Coop branch in Glasgow as ive used the cashpoint more than a few times. But i have heard good things about Smile. So if it a toss up between FD and Smile, I'd certainly go for the latter.

I've never been a big HSBC fan, but the £10 fee is a bad omen with FD id say...